Washing-machine.



PATENTED DEC. 11, 1906.

O. HARRIS. WASHING MACHINE. APPLIOATION FILED s31": 25 1905 hit/2288198.

i l l l UNITED sTATEs PATENT OFFICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 11, 1906.

Application filed September 25 l 1905. Serial No. 280.008.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, OWEN HARRIS, of the town of Kingsville, in the county of Essex, Province of Ontario, in the Dominion of Can ada, have invented certain new and useful Im rovements in Washing-Machines; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

This invention relates to im rovements in washing-machines as describe in the present specification and set forth in the accompanying drawings, that form part of the same.

The invention consists, essentially, of an open frame, uprights supporting said frame, a semicylindrical water-receptacle supported in said frame, a perforated drum j ournaled in suitable bearings in the heads of said receptacle, means for rotating said drum, means for adjusting said rotating means, and means for disengaging said rotating means.

The objects of the invention are to produce a machine of durable construction, which will be cheap to manufacture and easily operated and adjusted.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of the machine, the cover being partially broken away. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical section of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged perspective detail of one of the u rights, artially broken away, showing t e drum-sliaft and bearings and the means for disengaging the driving-gear.

Like characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in each figure.

Referring to the drawings, a is the body of the machine, which is formed, preferably, of sheet metal and of a rectangular shape with the bottom semicylindrical, and b is a rectangular frame surrounding the u per edge of the said body and firmly secured thereto.

0 and d are uprights which are firmly secured to the rectangular frame I). The uprights 0 and d form substantial supports for the frame and body of the machine and have secured to their lower extremities the crossbars e, upon which the whole structure rests.

f represents tie-bars firmly secured to the uprights c and d and located below the body at. These tie-bars firmly secure the uprights c and d in their osition and also support the semicylindrical body a.

g is a board or strip located at one end of the rectangular frame I) and securely attached thereto on the under side. The strip 9 forms with the frame a convenient receptacle for soap or other articles the machine.

his a cross-bar forming one end of the rectangular frame I) and extends upward beyond the level of said frame. This bar is preferably wider than the rest of the frame to form a holder upon which a wringer may be placed. In having this wringer-board at the end of the machine it will be seen that the wringer may be placed in position and will be entirely out of the way of the person operating the machine.

i is a cover, rectangular in shape, which fits over the top of the frame I) and has secured to the under side the strips 1', which hold it in place. 76 is a strip extending across one end of the cover i and projects downwardly to meet the upper surface of the board g. It will be seen that by forming the cover t in this manner the top of the machine will be effectually closed.

Zrepresents suitable handles secured to the cover 2.

m is a spout or vent secured to the upright c and having its inner end projecting into and secured to the'body a. This spout is for the purpose of carrying away the water and suds from the aforesaid body and may be stopped or plugged at its outer end in any suitable manner.

n is a perforated cylinder or drum preferably formed of sheet metal and provided with a hinged cover 0. The cover 0 has secured on its outer surface a spring-latch p, which engages a bracket or lug q, secured to the cylinder n. This spring-latch securely holds the cover 0 in its closed position; but should it be desired to raise the cover it is merely necessary to press the latch free from the lug i l and swing the cover upwardly upon its IIIO'GS.

r and s are brackets secured to the center of the ends of the cylinder n and have projecting outwardly therefrom the studs t and u. The stud t is formed, preferably, of such a length that when the cylinder n is in its working position the end of said stud will be'inside the semicylindrical body a. The stud u is formed of such a length that it will project outwardly through the body a and upright c.

1; represents bearing blocks or journals secured on the inside 0 the body a in central relation to the semicylindrical portion of said body. The bearing portion of the blocks 1) is formed U-shaped in cross-section to allow in use when operating IIO the studs t and a to be lifted upwardly without interference with the ournals.

w is a vertical slot formed in the frame I) and upright c and is of suflicient width to al low the stud u to pass freely in an upward di rection. The slot extends downwardly from the top of the frame I) to the center line of the journals 1).

0c is a vertical slot in the interior face of the frame I) and upright c, forming part with the slot 11) and extending beyond the sides thereof, and y is a recess formedin the outer face of the frame I) and upright c to correspond with the slot w, formed in the body a.

z is a block which fits into the slot to and extends down to the center line of the stud a. The block 2 is cut away at 2 to allow the stud to revolve freely. -3 represents plates secured to the block 2 on the inner and outer sides thereof and are formed to correspond with and slide in the slot as in the body a and the recess y in the frame and upright.

When the cylinder or drum n is placed in position, the studs and a resting in the bearing-blocks o, the blocks 2 may be placed in position in the vertical slot w, the plates 3 fitting into the slot 90 and recess '1], respectively, and effectually closing the opening in the end of the machine.

4 is a spur-gear secured to the outer end of the stud u.

5 is a spur-pinion meshing with the gear 1.

i The spur-pinion 5 is secured to a stud 6,which is journaled in a swinging arm 7. The'arm 7 is pivoted on a bolt 8, secured in the upright c.

9 is a horizontal slot in the arm 7 and forms at the outer end of the bar an upper projection or lip 10 and a lower projection or lip 11, the upper projection being preferably longer thanjthe lower.

12 is a bracket secured to the frame of the machine, and 13 is a recess formed at the back thereof.

14 is a horizontal slot formed in the bracket 12, centrally disposed in relation to the recess 13.

15 is a bolt which extends outwardly through the slot 14 and has a Tshaped head 16, which fits into the recess 13, but is free to move horizontally.

17 is a Wing-nut on the threaded end of the bolt 15.

When the arm 7 is in its normal position, .(shown in Fig. 1,) the lip 10 rests upon the bolt 15 and the said bolt is located at the in ner end of the slot 14. The under lip 11 on the arm 7 efiectually prevents the pinion 5 from raising out of gear with the spur-gear 4, as it is securely held against the bolt 15. The nut 17 holds the bolt 1 5 securely in its position and prevents its lateral displacement.

18 represents vertical slots formed in the bracket 12.

19 represents countersunk head-screws,

which engage the sides of the slots 18 and hold the bracket in position; but should it be desired to change the pinion 5 or on account of wear to adjust the downward movement of the arm 7 the bracket 12 may be adjusted vertically by loosening the screws 19 and moving the bracket to any desired position.

20 is an eye secured to the cylinder n, and 21 is a hook secured to the end of the body a. This hook and eye are for the purpose of holding the cylinder stationary while the person operating the machine is removing or placing articles within the cylinder.

22 is a crank which fits over the end of the stud 6 and forms the means by which the cylinder is rotated.

In the operation of the invention it will be seen that when all the parts are in the positions previously described andthe hook 21 is disengaged from the eye 20 the cylinder may be rotated by means of the handle 22, the articles to be washed being inclosed within the cylinder n. When it is desired to remove the articles from within the cylinder, the cover is removed and the cylinder secured in position by means of the hook and eye previously described, when the springlatch 19 may be disengaged from the lug q and the cover 0 swung back upon its hinges.

Should it be desired to remove the cylinder 02 from the machine, it is merely necessary to loosen the nut 17 and move the bolt 15 horizontally until it passes beyond the end of the lip 11. The arm 7 may then be swung upwardly upon its pivot 8, thus carrying the pinion 5 clear of the spur-gear 4, so that when the cylinder is lifted the gear 4 will be perfectly free. The block 2 may then be pulled upwardly out of the slot to and the cylinder lifted clear of the machine.

Should it be desired to remove the water or suds from the machine at any time during its operation, it is merely necessary to remove the plug from the spout we, when the water will naturally drain from the body.

WVhat I claim as my invention is 1. In a washing-machine, the combination with the frame having suitable uprights, a water-receptaclehaving bearings in the heads thereof and a drum having a centrally-arranged stud from each of its heads fixedly secured thereto and journaled in said bearings, of a spur-gear fixedly secured to one of said studs for rotating said drum, a spur-pinion meshing with the said spur-gear and secured to a suitable shaft, means for rotating said shaft, a pivotal arm having a bearing for said shaft, means for holding said arm in a fixed position, and means for disengaging said pinion from engagement with said gear to re- ?ncave the drum, as and for the purpose speci- 1e 2. In a washing-machine, the combination with the frame having suitable uprights, a Water-receptacle having bearings in the heads thereof and a drum having a centrally-arranged stud from each of its heads fixedly secured thereto and journaled in said bearings, of a spur-gear fixedly secured to one of said studs for rotating said drum, a spur-pinion meshing with the aforesaid gear and secured to a suitable shaft,v a crank-arm for rotating said shaft, a pivotal arm secured to said upright having a bearing for said shaft and a slot in the end thereof, means secured to said upright for engaging and disengaging the slot in said arm, and means for adjusting said engaging and disengaging means, as and for the purpose specified.

3. In a washing-machine, the combination with the frame having suitable uprights, a water-receptacle having bearings in the heads thereof and a drum having a centrally-ar ranged stud from each of its heads fixedly secured thereto and j ournaled in said bearings, of a spur-gear fixedly secured to one of said studs for rotating said drum, a spur-pinion meshing with the aforesaid gear and secured to a suitable shaft, a crank-arm for rotating said shaft, a pivotal arm secured to saidupright having a bearing for said shaft and a slot in the end thereof, a slidable bolt for engaging the slot in said arm and an'adjustable bracket having means for retaining said bolt, as and for the purpose specified.

4. In a washing-machine, the combination with the frame having suitable uprights, a water-receptacle having hearings in the heads thereof and a drum having a centrally-arranged stud from each of its heads fixedly secured thereto and journaled in said bearings, of a spur-gear fixedly secured to one of said studs for rotating said drum, a spur-pinion meshing with the aforesaid gear and secured to a suitable shaft, a crank-arm for rotating said shaft, a pivotal arm secured to said upright having a bearing for said shaft and a slot in the end thereof, a horizontally-arranged slidable bolt for engaging the slot in said arm, and a vertical adjustable bracket having means for retaining said bolt and slots in the end thereof engaging screws in one :(f the uprights, as and for the purpose speci- 5. In a washingmachine, the combination with the frame having suitable uprights, a water receptacle having bearings in the heads thereof and a drum having a centrally-arranged stud from each of its heads fixedly secured thereto and journaled in said bearings, of a spur-gear fixedly secured to one of said studs for rotating said drum, a spur-pinion meshing with the aforesaid gear and secured to a suitable shaft, a crank-arm secured to said shaft having a suitable handle, a pivotal arm having a bearing for said shaft and a longitudinal slot in the outer end thereof, a vertical adjustable bracket having a central cross-slot and slots in the ends thereof engaging screws in one of the uprights, and a bolt slidably held in said bracket and projecting outwardly from said cross-slot and sliding into the longitudinal slot in said pivotal arm anda nut on the end of said bolt, as and for the purpose specified.

Signed at Windsor this 15th day of September, 1905.

OWEN HARRIS. Witnesses:

JOHN TURK,

H. W. GRANT. 

